Tick Tick Tick
by Tears and Rain
Summary: Loki faces the bitter truth of his and Tony's relationship. Fluff-like angst. Rated T, but I'm playing it safe.


**A/N: Tonoki...Again. :) This is pretty far along in Tony and Loki's relationship. And what Tony's talking about is real. It's called Chronophobia. I guess he has a mild case of it.**

**This was supposed to be just a fluffy fic to giggle over, much like Tickles! But it turned into...this. Oops, I even made Loki cry.  
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**I don't own anything in this fanfiction!  
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**Review, _please!__  
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Tony rolled over onto his side, pushing his arms under his pillows. _Tick, tick, tick... _Then he rolled onto his other side, throwing his arms over his head. _Tick, tick, tick... _Then he turned onto his stomach shoving his hands under his pillow again, the onto his back resting them on his stomach. _Tick, tick, tick... _Needless to say, he couldn't get to sleep. _Tick, tick, tick... _After a few more tosses and turns, Tony saw a head shoot up in the darkness. "Tony?"

Tony sighed and rolled over so that he could see Loki's face. The alarm clock's light reflected on his eyes, making them seem to glow green. "Sorry, Loki. Didn't mean to wake you up. Just go back to sleep." Tony ran a soothing hand through his lover's hair and made to turn back over, but a hand caught his wrist, the soft finger tips resting over his rushing pulse.

"What's wrong, Tony?" There wasn't true worry in his voice, just concern... Okay, that was pretty much the same as worry, and (Tony hated to admit it, but) that comforted him - knowing that someone cared whether or not he could get to sleep at night. Which is why, in a momentary lapse of judgement, Tony decided that he could tell Loki what the problem was.

"I don't like the ticking."

"The what?" Now Loki sounded confused, and Tony found himself wishing that he could see Loki's facial expression, but he had his built-in flashlight under the blankets at the moment and it wouldn't be very nice to flash Loki with it. Instead, Tony just snuggled in close to Loki, snaking his arms around his slender waist and resting his head on his chest.

"The _ticking_. From the clock. It just - I don't know. It...symbolizes scary stuff. I mean the passing of time. One day, this will all be gone. There's stuff that I loved that already _is _gone. Because of the passing of time. And that scares me." Tony scoffed at himself, realizing how ridiculous he must sound, saying that to a god. "You wouldn't understand. Being immortal and all."

Loki tightened his arms around Tony and closed his eyes, understanding his problem all too perfectly. Eventually, everything that Loki cared about would fade. It would either change or leave. Tony would leave. Loki tried to think about it, but sometimes he had to think realistically. Eventually, Tony would die, and Loki would be left yet again, alone. "No, Tony. I understand." A tear slid down the side of his head as he rested his chin over his lover's head. "I understand perfectly. But don't worry. As much as I want to, I can not rid your mind of all fears, but I can promise you this: I will never leave you. I will stay with you until your very last breath and then I will not ever forget you. Not everybody can offer you an eternity of love, but I can, and that is what I'm doing."

Tony pushed himself impossibly closer to Loki and let a shuddering breath out as an unbelievable amount of relief washed over him. "Thanks, Loki. I love you too."

Loki smiled at Tony's simple but meaningful words. Tony couldn't give him an eternity, but he could what was left of his lifetime. "Goodnight, Tony."

"Good night, Loki." Tony melted further into the peace, and just smiled when he realized that the alarm clock had stopped somewhere during their talking. Loki must have turned it off. His eyes drifted shut and he tried to match his chest's rises and falls to Loki's until he needed to breathe normally, and eventually fell into a peaceful sleep.

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**A/N: So, what do you think? Review, please! It really isn't that hard to leave a review. Please? For knowing that you made someone smile.**


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